Appeal No. 97-2555Application No. 08/215,062 Page 9
affixed to said body means proximate the top of said body means,
said rim means being concentric with said opening. Claim 82
reads on Davis as follows: said rim means (Davis' rim R) is
composed of material that includes a shape memory material
(Davis' spring coil 10 or the material forming protective rim
13).
The argument advanced by the appellants (brief, pp. 15-16)
does not convince us that these claims are not anticipated by
Davis for the following reasons. First, it is our opinion that
Davis' rim R is equivalent to the corresponding rims described in
the present specification especially since the rims could contain
a coil spring as disclosed in the appellants' Figure 24. Second,
it is our view that Davis' rim R does provide a resilient outward
holding force sufficient for holding the device in position
during use since Davis teaches (column 2, lines 55-58) that the
diaphragm D is stabilized in position by the flexible rim R.
In our view, all the limitations of claims 82 and 86 are
taught by Davis. Accordingly, the examiner's rejections thereof
are affirmed.
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